Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The venue for the Capital Martial Arts Symposium was situated in a village in the capital’s western suburbs. The place was called the Bi Clan Village, and everyone in the village had the surname Bi. The capital’s First Ancient Martial Arts Aristocratic Family was none other than the members of the Bi Clan Village.

It was said that long ago, there was no Bi Clan Village, only a Bi Clan Manor House. It belonged to the ancient martial arts aristocratic family, the Bi Clan. Over the last few hundred years, the Bi Clan prospered, developing generation after generation, gradually forming the Bi Clan Village at the foot of the mountain.

The children of the Bi Clan Village were different from the children of normal villages. From the time they were young, they would follow their parents and elders to the Bi Clan Manor House. Their martial art talents would be assessed. If their talents were exceptional, they would stay in the Bi Clan Manor House and practice ancient martial arts.

Because of this, even though it was a small village, the experts there were plenty. The Bi Clan’s number of ancient martial art practitioners had an inseparable relationship with the clan prospering and continuing to be the greatest of the Five Aristocratic Families.

According to the traditional rules, every session of the Capital Martial Arts Symposium would be organized by the First Aristocratic Family of the previous session. So for this session of the Martial Arts Symposium, it was still held at the Bi Clan Manor House.

Wang Yuan and Mo Wen skipped class entirely. They sneaked out of school and directly hopped into a cab to the Bi Clan Manor House.

The cab stopped on the road outside the Bi Clan Village. “That village despises outsiders. They do not like vehicles from the outside entering. I can only drop you two off here,” the driver said to the two young men. The cab drivers around there all knew that the village was a bit strange and did not like outside vehicles to enter.

“That’s alright. Thank you for your troubles, big brother.” Wang Yuan nodded sincerely. After paying, he opened the door and got out. He seemed to know a bit about the situation with the Bi Clan Village and did not grumble about anything.

The driver saw that Wang Yuan was sincere, so he reminded them, “Little brother, if you both are foreigners who are here for travel, don’t simply approach the Bi Clan Village. The villagers don’t welcome outsiders, unless you are relatives or friends of the Bi Clan Village.”

“We know, we know.” Wang Yuan nodded non-stop. He had been born and bred in the capital, so he naturally knew the Bi Clan Village’s situation.

Mo Wen frowned. The Bi Clan Village was very overbearing.

“Mo Wen, following this road, we can reach the Bi Clan Village in a short while. But the people in the Bi Clan Village are quite xenophobic; furthermore, because the Capital Martial Arts Symposium is happening now, it is even harder to sneak in than usual,” Wang Yuan reminded Mo Wen. Up until now, he was still unclear as to how Mo Wen would sneak into the Bi Clan Manor House with him.

“Is the Capital Martial Arts Symposium happening in the Bi Clan Village?” Mo Wen asked.

“More precisely, the Capital Martial Arts Symposium is happening in the Bi Clan Manor House. Not everyone in the Bi Clan Village can practice ancient martial arts. Actually, at least 90 percent of the people in the Bi Clan Village do not practice ancient martial arts. Even if they have practiced some surface-level skills, they are more or less like me; we are not even recognized by the sect yet. Almost all those who really practice ancient martial arts live in the Bi Clan Manor House,” Wang Yuan explained.

The Bi Clan Manor House was not any different from normal villages. The only difference was everyone in the village knew about the ancient martial arts world, and they practiced some simple ancient martial art techniques.

“Then why are we going to the Bi Clan Village? Can’t we go straight to the Bi Clan Manor House?” Mo Wen asked.

“To go to the Bi Clan Manor House, we must pass by the Bi Clan Village. If we can’t even enter the Bi Clan Village, it will be impossible for us to reach the Bi Clan Manor House. Are you thinking about sneaking in?” Wang Yuan looked suspiciously at Mo Wen. He wouldn’t be planning to sneak into the Bi Clan Manor House, would he? The Bi Clan Manor House was heavily guarded. If he could sneak into it, he would already have done so. Why wait until now?

“Why not?” Mo Wen said indifferently. He had only come to this Capital Martial Arts Symposium to find out what Xiaoyou was up to, but how they would get in was a problem. After all, strictly speaking, he didn’t belong to any ancient martial art factions in the capital, so this Capital Martial Arts Symposium might not acknowledge him. Therefore, other than sneaking in, he could only force his way in with his Cultivation.

“It’s impossible. Unless you can fly through the Bi Clan Village, it is impossible to sneak into the Bi Clan Manor House.” Wang Yuan rolled his eyes. If this was Mo Wen’s plan, then their trip here to the Bi Clan Village would most likely be fruitless.

The Bi Clan Village surrounded the Bi Clan Manor House, with people guarding it at all four corners. Unless they flew through it, it would be hard to sneak in under the watchful eyes of the Bi Clan masters.

“Fly!” Mo Wen’s eyes twinkled. This was a good idea. With his current Cultivation, he could glide in the air for short distances. Flying up a not-too-tall hill wasn’t anything too difficult.

He glanced at Wang Yuan. After pondering for a while, he gave up this idea. That would be too shocking for Wang Yuan. He would most likely be frightened. After all, in Wang Yuan’s mind, those in the Qi Nucleation realm were already peerless top masters. Those in the Embryonic Breathing realm only existed in legends.

The two of them, one in front and one behind, very quickly arrived at the entrance of the village. The village was not too big, but it wasn’t too small, either. There were hundreds of houses with smoke rising from the chimneys. Children played in the yards, and the elderly sat under the porches, keeping cool. On the surface, it was no different from any normal village.

“Who is there?” Two strong men stopped Mo Wen and Wang Yuan at a big phoenix tree in front of the village. They were both tall and huge, like two door gods, blocking off half of the road.

The gazes of these two men were sharp and their temples plump. They were full of Essence Qi. At a glance, anyone could tell that they were brawny. However, they weren’t just brawny, they were two ancient martial art practitioners with Cultivation in the Soothing Pulse realm, which was not low.

These kinds of people, if they were in other factions, would most likely be the mainstay of the factions. However, in the Bi Clan Village, they were used to guard the village entrance. It showed that the influence of the Bi Clan was indeed not small.

Wang Yuan looked at Mo Wen. Wang Yuan could only depend on him now. After all, Mo Wen was the one who said he could bring him in for the Capital Martial Arts Symposium.

“We are here to take part in the Martial Arts Symposium,” Mo Wen said nonchalantly.

“Take part in the Martial Arts Symposium?” Upon hearing his words, the facial expressions of the two strong men softened. At least it was proven that these two men were most likely people in the ancient martial arts world and not some foreign tourists. Otherwise, they wouldn’t know about the Capital Martial Arts Symposium.

“Please present your invitation to the symposium,” the two strong men said politely, saluting Mo Wen with their fists. However, they were somewhat doubtful. Why would the two youths come alone? Why hadn’t the seniors in their families come? Furthermore, the Martial Arts Symposium had already been happening for seven or eight days. The event was approaching the end. Those who could come had arrived long ago. Those who couldn’t would not show up now. It was rather strange for them to come at this time.

“I do not have an invitation. I am just a foreign ancient martial art practitioner who came when I heard about the symposium,” Mo Wen answered honestly as he shook his head.

“No invitation? A foreign ancient martial art practitioner?” The brawny guy who asked the question frowned. In the past, there were indeed many foreign practitioners from the ancient martial arts world who had come to observe the ceremony during the Capital Martial Arts Symposium. However, those people usually had a fairly good relationship with the few major ancient martial art factions in the capital. They came invited. Not only did they have an invitation, they had a VIP invitation.

Not only did this youth not have an invitation, he was a foreign ancient martial art practitioner, so he was definitely not invited. In other words, he didn’t have personal relationships with the few major ancient martial art factions in the capital.

Hearing Mo Wen’s answer, Wang Yuan almost fainted. Even if you don’t know how to lie, you don’t have to reveal everything! He had even admitted that he was a foreign ancient martial art practitioner. If Mo Wen hadn’t said that he was a foreign ancient martial art practitioner, with his Cultivation, Wang Yuan reckoned that he could still have attended the Martial Arts Symposium. But now, it was around an 80 percent a no-go.

“Sorry. This is the Martial Arts Symposium organized by the ancient martial arts world from the capital. We don’t welcome foreign ancient martial art practitioners. If you don’t have an invitation, please leave.” The brawny guy saluted them with his fists. His tone was still polite, but his facial expression was obviously colder than before.

“Since I am in the area of the capital, naturally I am considered as half a member of the capital’s ancient martial arts world. I have come here to join our Martial Arts Symposium. What’s wrong with that?” Mo Wen refuted, immediately calling the Capital Martial Arts Symposium our Martial Arts Symposium. His ability of engaging stakeholders was extraordinary.

“This…” The brawny guy frowned, hesitating. What Mo Wen said was not without any rationale. Since it was a Martial Arts Symposium, naturally it was for all the ancient martial art practitioners in the capital area. However, the main aim of this Martial Arts Symposium was to select the five strongest Aristocratic Families in the capital. As a foreigner, what business did he have being there?

Just when the brawny guy was still hesitating, a voice rang from the village. “Little brother, you speak some truth. However, not all who have practiced some surface level skills have the qualifications to attend the Martial Arts Symposium. If you want to join the Capital Martial Arts Symposium, then you need to prove your ability. If you have sufficient ability, then naturally you can join.” The next moment, a middle-aged man in white walked towards them. Behind him were a few well-built youths. All of them were full of energy and vigor with strong auras. All of them had practiced ancient martial arts.

“Elder Bi You.” The two brawny guys who guarded the village entrance immediately bowed respectfully upon seeing this middle-aged man. He was an elder in the Bi Clan Manor House and was highly respected. He was in charge of safety and logistics during the Capital Martial Arts Symposium.

The middle-aged man named Bi You said with a smile, “Little brother, if both of you have Cultivation in the Soothing Pulse realm, then I will let you in. If not, then I am sorry. After all, the Capital Martial Arts Symposium is a joint event among the Five Aristocratic Families. Naturally, it has some standards to keep.”

He didn’t chase Mo Wen and Wang Yuan away immediately. In his mind, even if the two youths had practiced some ancient martial arts, it was most likely nothing profound. If they didn’t have the guidance of some seniors with high Cultivation, it would be difficult for them to have any significant achievements. It was hard to say whether they even had Cultivation in the Soothing Pulse realm.

If they did, that meant they had good talent. There might be some ancient martial art factions behind them, so it didn’t hurt anything to let them in and check out the event. They were just curious about the Martial Arts Symposium. He was once a youth, and naturally, he could understand their mentality. Therefore, there was no need to offend two ancient martial art practitioners, who might have ancient martial art factions behind them and might have great achievements in the future, over this small matter.

Of course, if they didn’t even have Cultivation in the Soothing Pulse realm, they were not worthy of his special attention. He didn’t have to break the rules because of them.

“That’s easy.” Upon hearing this, Mo Wen’s mouth immediately curled into a smile. Those with Soothing Pulse realm Cultivation could enter. Naturally, that was easy. He waved his hand as though he was shaking off some dust. A strong gale suddenly erupted, instantly cutting the nearby phoenix tree in half. With a creaking sound, the tree fell…